Oh my! Has it really been this long since my last post?! It feels good to post, once again.

I have been very busy the past month or so. I have relocated back to CA, from WA, where I had been living the past ten month.

It was an extremely difficult decision to move back, but I needed to feel the sense of satisfaction and peace that a familiar and comforting environment brings one.

I am a native New Yorker, brought up on Long Island. I moved to CA in 1968 (where my mother and brother were living), in my mid-twenties. The majority of my life has been spent in CA. There is a lot to be said for familiarity and the comfortableness of environment.

My relocation back to my comfort zone has been more than positive. I feel at home, and my sense of peace is illuminated in more ways than one, each day.

A dear and caring friend of mine traveled by plane to the local airport in WA. She flew in to help me drive my car back to CA. There aren’t too many individuals in one’s life who would be so selfless. Within one hour of speaking to her about wanting to return, she had everything set up and ready to go. How often in our lives are we able to say that a friendship is so strong and caring, and that our friend will literally do anything possible for our happiness!

The photos were taken on our road trip back to CA. They are both of Mt. Shasta. The photo at the top was taken on the road…I was not driving. The photo on the bottom was taken from our hotel window, just before sunset.

Waiting For Robert Capa: A novel, by Susana Fortes, is a book that held my interest from beginning until the end, not only because of the photojournalism aspect, but also due to the romantic interests, and the historical aspect. The novel is based on actual individuals who were war photojournalists.

Andre Friedmann, was a struggling photographer, living in Paris. He was a Jewish-Hungarian exile. He had an assignment to take pictures for publicity purposes for a life insurance company. Within that realm, he finds a woman named Ruth Cerf, and asks her to model for him.

Ruth was suspicious, and told him she was bringing a friend along. Her name was Gerta Pohorylle. From there, begins a story line that mingles fact with fiction, and encompasses a story of romance and photojournalism like you have never read before.

Andre and Gerta become known as a couple. They were two young and brilliant individuals trying to maintain a relationship and garner assignments in Spain in order to document the war. And, in order to do so, Gerta came up with the bright idea to change their names in order to gain recognition.

First she changes Andre’s name to Robert Capa, eliminating his Jewish surname. She becomes his self-appointed “agent”. Eventually she changes her name to Gerda Taro. She wanted to be independent, and be recognized for her own work, rather than her photographs be included in Robert’s work without a byline. She literally became the first female war photographer who involved herself in the midst of battle. He became infamous in the world of photography for his extremely hardline images, leaving nothing to chance or to the imagination. To say they found themselves in unbelievable circumstances, is an understatement.

They were right there, within the action, each one, documenting war through photography, putting their lives at risk in order to capture the ravages and horrors of war. Those efforts and circumstances changed the face of war photography forever. From that point forward, war was seen by millions of individuals in ways that they never imagined.

Capa’s photographs depict tumultuous moments. His photograph “Death of a Loyalist Militiaman“, became the poster child, so to speak, for the Spanish Civil War. It is an incredible image, and one that depicts the moment of one man’s death, literally. With one click of the camera, he captured death as it occurred. He never lived that image down, due to speculation that it was staged. He denied it, but there were the nonbelievers. It followed him for the rest of his life.

As a side note-I knew of Robert Capa’s war photography, especially his work regarding D-Day, and other images during that document World War II. I knew of Gerda Taro. But, I did not know about their relationship.

I won’t go any further with details, because the novel is too compelling and intense. Suffice it to say, the love story is depicted with realism and deep intimate moments. The war angle and photography moments are intensely written and portrayed. Susana Fortes is masterful at keeping the reader interested, and masterful in illuminating her word images.

I recommend Waiting For Robert Capa: A Novel. The historical information, alone, makes it more than an excellent read. Combine that with the romantic story of two brilliant individuals whose work will live on, and keep their brilliance and efforts alive, and you have a book difficult to put down.

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To view some of the incredible photographs that were taken by Robert Capa, visit Magnum Photos. I was absorbed in all of them, but the ones from Italy 1943-1944 spoke to me, as my father was involved in the liberation of Italy. I was also amazed at the D-Day photographs, and remember seeing many of them while growing up, in various literary magazines and in newspapers.

The May Jewish Book Carnival is up and hosted by Jennifer Tzivia MacLeod! There are many links to browse through, from a podcast interview, to book reviews, to insights, and to so much more! There is something there for everyone!